Arch supporter



ARCH sUPPoRTER Filed OCT.. 30, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 fgg 13, 49

Patented Oct. 5, 1943 Y N y2,330,978

UNITED 4simil-3s, PArENrl-o-FFICE ,ft2-330,973. *ARGHSUPPRER *y 1 v' l Benjamin wmemrittsburgai i Applicatioaoetoberso,1940, serial misstaan: f l

v i i l (arias-2).

4 Garnis.l

My invention relates to arch supports and to a'method of and apparatus'for ascertaining-the proper shape and dimension'swhich 'it'fshould have to properly t'a foot withl which itis to beused. A

Oneobject of my'invention is toprovide an' arch supporting device consisting of a soft, ilex' ible, leathery 'article that may be. placed in l the as to provide a soft, resilient, compressible sup-A2 port for the arch of the foot. l Y l l .Another object ofzmy AinventionV is' to provide. an `arch supporting device of the foregoing character in which the tendency of thecompres'sible element for the 'arch to touch the foot vabout its normal ylongitudinalaxis is equalized'and coun'- ter-balanced bya correlative, resilientA compressible element of appropriate dimensions located to engage the metata'rsal .region `of the foot: Another object of my iriventlonvisftoprvide an arch supporting deviceofthe foregoing character that shallA be initially shaped' to 'embody a certain amount of concavit'y about the longitudinal axis, to enable the device to more readily lit thefoot, and to impose a minimurr'ifrequrement upon the foot to sha-pe thel device fo'proper fitting engagement.y Iy '1 Another object. cf'my invention is'td'provide a simple apparatus whereby a matrix' may be formed by the foot'under'norinal standing pressure conditions to enable a properly. fitting arch supportingdevice to be made for each foot; ori

simultaneously for both feet, according to normal' standing pressures. l

Another object of my invention isi toiprovde be readily shipped or mailed to persons Whomay not be; conveniently near astore orlo'ther place where the foot measurements might normally' be taken)` n In 4order to procure a matrix' offthelfoot to be fitted, I employ aV platform' Of-relatively fsoft,

` resilient, ompressible materiaL'such as sponge rubber, which is approximately flatl and level in its initial state. A layer of aluminum foil is placed on this rubber platform. V Thep'erson Whose foot is togbeiitted then placeshis foot on* the aluminum foil with his entire weight, s-thatf the foil will be shaped to his foot by'l the rubber? base according to normal standing and walking' Pressure conditions After' the Vsheet of aluminumfoilis pressed into shape,:it is self-'sustaining and retains lthat shape to provide av matrix' to permit the measurements of the foot vto lbe taken for the making of a suitablearch supportin'g device for that foot. v t

In order toV permit the foot to adjust itself to afmaximumdegree according to its naturaltendencies, I make the arch supporting device Vas soft as'` possible; while retaining, ofcourse, the

necessary physical 1` strength to maintain the 'required.' relative disposition of theassociatesland cooperativey elements or parts of the arch spporting; device. .Y 1

With that in mind, I form the arch supporting device -oftwo' piece's'- of relatively soft leather 'between'which 'I placepadsl of soft compressible material such as sponge rubber, properly spaced and of proper ldimensionsandcontours, to pro-V vide the amount of support Athat willbe necessary for the arch cf the foot, as indicated` by the matrix Iof aluminum foil 'previouslyfformed' by the foot. The two layers of leather materiaband the inserted Vpads of comp-ressible material are then cemented together to form a single integral laminated' unit that may' vbe placed'inthefshe of the Wearer,"and that will then constitute a soit resilient support for the arch of the foot,

Due tothe softness of lthczrnaterial ofthe archsupporting device, V the foot Will/be' fitted Aas though with a soft glove that will conform to lthe foot with a minimum of external shape pressurey except in those regions' where the inserted material is specifically provided to impose adeiinite reaction pressure against the foot.

' `In order to keep thearch-supporter in place in the shoe so that it Will not slide forward and out of properposition, in response to the sliding friction force impressed on it when the foot is inserted into the shoe, the bottom surface of the arch-.supporter is provided with a layer of 'high- 1y frictional non-skidding material that' tendsto hold'the arch=supporter inplace against the tendency'l of vthe foot to move it forward When the foot is inserted into the shoe. Y

An important feature of the arch-supporter of .my inventio'nis the provision and location of an insert in the arch-supporter to engage thefoot in 'the metatarsal region behind the first phalanges. l 'V' y The provision,l inthe arch-supporter of anfelment which imposes an external. pressure up-V Wardlyagainst the arch, has a tendency to throw the foot-'offlnormal position by rotating it aroundl tlieloig'itdial axis of the foot, according to the amount of lift'upon the archby that element of the support which is directly under the arch. InA order to compensate for that turning force, I provide a slight amount of lift in theA metatarsal region to be effective upwardly on the opposite side of the longitudinal axis of the foot, and thereby restore the foot to a balanced position, while supplying the necessary support under the arch.

In order further to aid the foot in maintaining a normal position and form, bothwith respect to its longitudinal axis and withrespect to the bottom of the foot, the arch-supporter may be shaped to embody a certain amount of con-, .f

cavity about the longitudinal axis so it will conform to the foot as muchA aspossible, even before pressure is exerted by the foot against thesupn* j porter.

wearer, the thickness of the inserts is varied.- The arch-supporter and the apparatus which I employ to procure a propermeasurement for it, according to myinvention, are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure 1 is a plan View of a sheet of'metallic foil, such as aluminum, of vsuiiicient'size to take the impression of a foot, as indicated;V s

Figure 2 is an edge view of thesheet in Fig-- ure 1;V f

y Figure 3 is a perspective view with apart of a front side Wall brokenaway, of a'box containingA a soft rubber material to serve as a platform'for. a sheet of metallic foil which is to be shaped into a matrix by the pressure of a foot which is to be tted; v 1 i, Y

Figure 4is'a plan view of a sheet" of the metallic foil showing a typical impressionk o'f a right-foot;l`

Figure 5 is a side elevational view of the'matrix formed of the metallic lfoil as shownin Figure 4 the View being taken from' a positionr at the outer sideof the foot;

Figure 6 is aside elevational viewV of the matrix taken from the inner side o f the foot;

Figure 'I is a transverse sectional view Aof the matrix of Figure 5;

Figure 8 is a perspective view ofan apparatus for procuring impressionsof the feetto form the matrices; i l f i Figure 9 is a plan view rof the apparatus vof Figure 8, with the floor removed to show the location and disposition of the foot-measuring units on thescale; Y

Figure 10'is a vertical transverse sectional view of the apparatus of Figure 9;

Figure 11 isa plan view of an arch-supporter;

Figure 12 is a vertical section taken along lines l2-l2 of Figure 11; and

Figure 13 is a vertical section taken I3-I3 of Figure 11. r

Asv shown in FigureY 1, a sheet of metallic foil l |,such as aluminum foil, is employed to take the imprint of a foot to form a matrix from which the shape of the foot may be measured tomake a'proper arch-supporting device." Theledge of the sheet Il may be provided with a border I2 doubled over to aid` the sheety in retaining its matrix form after having g the foot impressed therein. The sheet should be sufficiently large to receive the print ofthe foot-as indicatedV by the dotted outline I3, with some additional material around the edges to be bentupward as re-inforcingflange material. y

In order to form the metal foil sheet intoy a matrix, to conform to the shape ofthe foot under pressure, as it would be when the person is standing, I prefer to use a material such as `soft or;

along `lines rests on the top of the soft rubber base.

sponge rubber as a base for the sheet of metal foil II, so that when the person stands on the sheet, supported by the rubber, the metal foil will be caused to conform to the shape of the foot as the foot pressure compresses the yieldable resilient rubber material.

In Figure 3, I have illustrated one arrangement which may beemployed. As shown there, a rubber base is illustrated as a laminated structure consisting of three layers, I4, l5, and i6, of soft sponge rubber disposed in a box or container l1.. The sheet of metal foil ll is initially hat and The foot that is to be tted is pressed down on the metal foil Il, and presses the foil into a matrix .l8,-as indicated in line in Figure 4.r The box Il His provided with a cover so the entire unit may In order to compensate for the weight cftre4 libe utilzed'as a shipping Container, when the device isto be sent to anyone who has no ready access to the usual shoe shop where such measurements might be otherwise taken. 1

The matrix I8; when formed, will take a. shape suchf'as shown inFigures 4, 5, and 6, with the imprint of the bottomof the foot indicating the dimensions of the various parts of the foot under normal standingor walking pressure conditions.

From this matrix ,thusfformed may be gotten the dimensions necessary to make up thev arch-supporting device vthat will iit the corresponding foot. fWheremetal foil is used, and a matrix formed as shown in Figures 4, 5, and 6, any excess material, pressed upward beyond that needed, may be trimmed atthe time the matrix is made. a Y

As:indicated in Figures 5 and 6, and in Figure 7, the arch kof the foot is' indicatedby the concave space 2| at the middle of the matrix. Since the concave space or arch-2l was formed by the pressure of the foot on axyielding material such as the rubber, the-archindicates the' natural position which the 'foot should have, and the support for the foot should therefore be such as to aid the foot in maintainingthat arched shape and coniliary platform 28 is attached to the scale platform 21,' and is of substantially U-shape to provide two side. armsV 30 and 3| vthat serve as supporting platforms for two containers or pans 32 and 33 respectively, similar to that 'shown in Figure ,3. Each pan 32 and 33 contains thick pads'34 and 34a of sponge rubber, similar tothe y rubber forms shown in'Figure 3.

A iioor cover 35 is disposed above the pans 32 and 33', andjit is provided with adjacently spaced openings 36 andV 31` vabovefthe pans, and of sufficient size to permit a foot to be inserted through either openings 36 or 31 onto 'the rubber pad 34 or 35 of the underlyingpan. The openings 36 and 31 are slightly smaller than the peripheral dimensions of the associated pans, so that neither pan can project up through the opening directly above it, but will be stopped and prevented from moving upwardly through its .openingupon engaging the under surface ofthe iioor 35. l l' The iioor 35 is also provided with a depending apron 38,' encircling and surrounding the scale and the pans, and serving'alsoas a Wall structure to support the floor 35.l vBy providing ycastors 39 attached to thebottom'of the apron 38; andV by suitably supporting. the scale and its' pans from the floor 35 and the apron 33, the entire apparatus may be made movable to be shifted from place to place, as. desired.

A hand rail 4U isattached to and supported on the floor 35,`and s provided v'to enable aperson i to balance himself to prevent falling, whilestepping onto the rubber in the two pans to form an impression of thefoot'or feet that are to be fitted.

As previously explained, when an impression i of vthe foot is to be taken, a sheet of aluminum foil is laid on top of the rubber pads in either or in both pans, as the case may be; and the person Whose foot is to be fitted steps onto the aluminum foil sheet with his full weight to form a matrix of the foot arch.

At the same time, the weight of the person to be fitted is indicated by the scale and that reading of his Weight will provide an indication of the proper amount of supporting material to be used in making up the arch-supporter for that person.

As previously explained, the pans are slightly larger than the openings through which the foot may be pressed onto the rubber. Consequently, pressure on one pan will tilt the other pan only to a limited amount, until such tilted pan engages the bottom surface of the' floor 35 as a stop.

The matrix formed by either foot as it presses the aluminum foil against the yielding rubber Will then provide an indication of the natural proper form which the arch of the foot should have, and also serves to indicate those areas on the sole of the foot which have been subjected to excessive pressure during normal walking operations of the patient. The location of those highpressure areas on the matrix will indicate the areas that must be relieved by the arch-supporter. The inserts in the arch-supporter may then be disposed in the proper areas adjacent the highpressure areas to provide suflicientlifting support to the foot', at the corresponding areas of the foot, to relieve those areas previously subjected to excess-pressure.

Such excess-pressure areas usually indicate the presence of a callus on the sole of the foot. By relieving the presure at that area, the callus is permitted to soften so it can be more readily treated and removed; and the relief from pressure at that region of the foot eliminates the discomfort otherwise caused by the excess pressure and reaction pressure of the calloused area.

In order to support the foot properly, I form an arch-supporting device 45, as shown in Figures 1l, 12 and 13. The arch-supporter V45 is made up of two layers 4E and 41 of soft, flexible,v leather, or leather-like material, with filling material or inserts 48 of soft, compressible, resilient sponge rubber. The filling material 48 is disposed between the top and bottom layers 46 and 4l to provide a raised portion in the areas 48 that will t under the arch of the foot at the region corresponding to the concavity or arch space 2l in the matrix of Figure 6. An insert in the area 50 co-operates with the front portion of the insert material in the area 49 to provide a transverse support for the metatarsal region of the foot, to relieve the excess pressure usually found at the main joint of the large toe, and usually indicated by the presence of a hardened area or callus there. This is one of the important features of the arch-supported embodying my invention, whereby the excess-pressure area of the foot may be relieved by providing a. resilient lifting support adjacent to the pressure area.

In order to provide -a proper lift, the inserts 48 or sharp-cut edges, rather thantapered feather edges. With such square or sharp-cutledges, the entire area ofthe insert is available as a support. The twoportions49 and 50 are preferably formed as separate areas, substantially as indicated, for flexibility, although they may be .formed as a continuous portion 'Without any .intermediate bend lline, such as indicated at theregion 5|. The perforations 52 extending through the material in'areas 49 and- 50 serve'as ventsor ventilating'openings topermit the transmission of air.

An additional area 55 Vis provided with a filler insert to provide a support to the region of the foot slightly on the opposite side of the longitudinal foot axis from the side on which the arch is supported by the insert 49. That support 55 serves to provide a balance and to prevent the lifting effect of the arch-supporting regions 49 and 50 from tilting the foot from its proper normal position. Any tilting tendency of the archsupporting insert areas is counter-balanced by the lifting tendency of the area 55.

In order to prevent the arch-supporter from slipping or sliding in the shoe, either when the foot is first inserted in the shoe or during walking, an anti-skid layer 5l of friction-producing material is cemented to the under surface of the rear or heel portion of the device. fThis layer 51 may be of rubber or treated to have a rubber-like surface to provide the desired friction.

The front edge 60 of the arch-supporter is lo cated to be behind the toes so there will be no interference with their freedom of movement.

By means of the apparatus illustrated above, procuring a matrix of the print and form of a foot under pressure, I am enabled to procure the information and data relative to size and shape of the foot under normal standing or walking conditions, to enable me to properly form and shape the arch-supporting unit as described in .Figure 11.

The matrix, in showing the exact location of the excess-pressure regions, indicates how the arch-supporter should be formed and shaped to provide the proper relief to eliminate the discomfort suffered by that measured foot.

In addition to the data given by the matrix forv the actual dimensions of the foot under pressure, I also have available and utilize the reading of the scale showing the Weight of the person as a factor in determining the amount of pressure to i which the insert-areas of the arch-supporter may be subjected, so that the appropriate thickness of material may be inserted to maintain the proper lcontours under'the pressure of the full weight of the individual when standing or walking.

My invention is not limited to the specic details of the apparatus or of the arch-supporter,

that are illustrated, since various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, asset forth in the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

l. The method'of forming a matrix to show the form of a foot under pressure of standing Weight, which consistsrin placing the foot on a sheet of metallic foil supported on a resilient yieldable base, with the full pressure of the body on the. foot.

2. An apparatus for forming a matrix impression of a foot to serve as a guide in making a supporting device for the arch of the foot, cornprisinga base of compressible yielding' resilient material having a relatively .flat top surface of sucient area to accommodate a foot ;'a layer of metallic foil on the top`surface to receive the foot impression; and means for supporting and confining the compressible base material'against excessive lateral displacement.

3. Apparatus for forming a matrix of a human foot under normalstanding pressure conditions, to provide an indication `of excess-pressure areas on the foot, topermit` correcting supports .to be provided for the foot; saidl apparatus compris-v ing a platform scale; a beam across the platform; a box on each end of the beam; a resilient rubber pad in the box; and a layer of metallic foil on each rubber pad to receive the pressure of' a foot to be fitted and to be formed byfsuchpressure intoa matrix showing the excess-pressure areas on the-sole of the foot and the form of the arch.

4. An apparatus as in claim 3, with a oor supported above the two boxes, and provided with two openings, one above each box to permit a foot to be inserted through the opening and onto the rubber in the box below.

BENJAMIN .W. KLEIN. 

